*I received this advance reader copy from Simon and Schuster through Net Galley. This book will be published August 15, 2023. I am grateful for the opportunity to read this story ahead of its release date in return from my honest review.
I am so conflicted on this one. There were no parts of this book that I loved but I did really like some. Unfortunately, there were other parts that I honestly just did not get. It felt like the author wrote 2 short stories and then tried to blend them so that it would create something long enough to be a novel. It felt disconnected and sloppy to me. There was also a lot of narrative but not a lot of dialogue which made it hard to connect to the characters. There are 3 parts to this story. In part 1, Ivy becomes pregnant as a teenager and leaves home when her parents threaten to send her to a home for unwed mothers where her baby will be given up for adoption. Ivy ends up in a cult-like commune where she marries the leader prior to giving birth to Mia. As Mia gets older she finds a way to escape the commune through the world of books, which are forbidden. This part covers a wide range of years in a short number of pages. For me, this resulted in a storyline that lacked depth, making it difficult to connect to both the story and the characters. In part two, you are transported back in time to learn about the life of Nathaniel Hawthorne, Mia’s favorite author. Mia is also transported back in time where she falls in love with Nathaniel. Other than Mia being a character from part 1, I struggled to relate part 1 and part 2. In addition to being transported to a different time, it felt like I was also transported to a different book. I know what the connection was supposed to be but I didn’t feel it. Part 3 sort of brings the two worlds together but not very well, in my opinion. I haven’t read a lot of Alice Hoffman’s books but the ones I have read, I have liked. I just didn’t get this one. I typically like time travel stories and stories about life on a commune but this one just felt superficial and disconnected to me.

I was really excited to read this novel, but unfortunately, it left me with disappointment. The story begins when Ivy gets pregnant and runs away after her parents tell her they plan to put the baby up for adoption. She ends up in a cult, marries the cult leader, and gives birth to Mia. When Mia becomes a teenager, she longs to escape with her mother. In the meantime, she falls in love with books which are banned within the cult; her favorite being The Scarlet Letter. Mia eventually escapes and goes on to live within society but eventually is transported through time and meets Nathaniel Hawthorne.

This book started strong but then the plot just never fully developed. I wish we could have more of Ivy's perspective in the cult along with Mia's story. So much detail was missed, and I felt like I barely knew the characters. The romance between Mia and Nathaniel was rushed and shallow.

3 Stars

"the books I fell in love with were always the ones that made me feel known, and they also changed my life".

In true Alice Hoffman writing, this book was whimsical and heavy on the magical realism. The point of her books isn't to read them and say what can be done or not, but the magic that imagination can do while exploring.. This book is told in multiple parts, the first of which where we meet Ivy and her daughter Mia. Ivy finds herself pregnant and with nowhere to go but a community that has opened its arms and hearts to her. Only as she's there for awhile does she realize she was prey to the leader Joel. Told from the view of Ivy and then her teenage daughter Mia, you learn of the cult-like ways they live in the commune...ripped away from life under the watchful eye of their leader. Even as the author writes this part of the novel, there is always hope, and it's one thing I love about her magical realism books. She can write about pain but she does it without losing the hope...and with this novel, it's the dreams that happen by opening a book. The escapism that can lead to freedom of the mind and the heart.

When the book takes a turn into the past (time travel in the magical sense), Mia meets the author of the book that gave her hope, well before he wrote the novel. And here is where I think the reader should just go with it...it's not possible based on our knowledge of the world but it's magical and I was totally here for it.

Alice Hoffman is like Patti Callahan Henry to me. Both write in charming ways but with a message of light that comes out of the darkness. Huge fan of them both and grateful to have been given this early arc of it.

"a book doesn't live when it's written. It lives when it's read".

In her new novel The Invisible Hour, venerated author Alice Hoffman covers such important topics as a woman's right to do what she chooses with her own body, mistrusting literature as propaganda, and the fact that the two most powerful forces on Earth are knowledge, and love. Ivy Jacob is a lonely, misunderstood young woman when she becomes pregnant at 16. Cast out by her family, Ivy winds up in a commune, married to the leader. Joel is a hard man, bent on total control of his commune members. He does not allow followers to read books, or the children to attend public school in town. Ivy, a lifelong reader and library enthusiast, gives birth to a daughter she names Mia. Like mother like daughter, Mia also longs for knowledge, and sneaks books out of the local public library. After Ivy's death, her stepfather Joel finds her stash of hidden books, brands her with an A for anarchy, arrogance, and perhaps worst of all to Joel - ambition - for mia believes in, aspires to, and plans for a life outside of the commune and away from Joel. When her books are burned and her private refuge destroyed, Mia does the unthinkable and runs away.

The book is difficult to review without spoiling, but if you sense elements of The Scarlet Letter in Mia's story, well let me just say you are correct. I enjoyed the first section of the book immensely, but I found the rest a bit convoluted. I did enjoy seeing conceits from Hoffman's usual bag of tricks (Hello red boots!!!!) The book however is an important read, given that the lives of women in this day and age are slowly reverting back to the lives of women like Hester Prynne and those of her era.
Overall this book is an loving homage to libraries, reading, and the love of books, which is always something to treasure and preserve.

Historically, I have enjoyed Alice Hoffman. I’ve always said her style takes getting used to, but this one just didn’t land for me. While in the past, I thought her writing was poetic and artistic, it felt more drawn out and glazed over this time. I wished the chapters were a bit shorter so that it felt a bit more bite-sized.
After a bit, I felt like there was no solid plot. I knew the story and what was happening, but I couldn’t identify what exactly the real issue was we were trying to solve? Maybe if I actually enjoyed The Scarlett Letter more itself, I would’ve appreciated the fawning over Nathaniel.
I want to say that in a different season or state of mind, I think I could’ve gotten more from this one. But this time around it just wasn’t it. I put it down around halfway and had a really reallllly hard time picking it back up.
*thanks to NetGalley for this eARC

Thank you NetGalley, Atria Books and Alice Hoffman for a copy of this book.

When Ivy gets pregnant at an early age, her boyfriend abandons her and her parents control her by trying to send her to away to give birth and give the baby up for adoption. Ivy decides to run away and finds herself at the Community where another man is waiting to control her life. When her daughter Mia grows up, she finds her escape in something forbidden, books. The book she relates to most is The Scarlet Letter which Mia feels almost tells her mother's story. We follow Mia as she escapes from the Community and finds a new life of her own. One of the only people she feels connected to is Nathaniel Hawthorne, the author of The Scarlet Letter. Mia is transported back in time to connect with Nathaniel and tell her story.

Initially after finishing the novel, I was not sure if I enjoyed the time travel. I have read several novels by this author so I knew to expect magic but since Nathaniel was a real person I thought it was odd Mia went back in time to met him. Today, the more I have thought about it and how Mia's connection to Hawthorne ultimately affected Mia's life, I found it very clever. Throughout this book, there were two themes that really hit me. One being how at time women have little or no control over their own bodies and choices and two being that one book can change your life.

This story is a retelling of sorts of The Scarlet Letter. Ivy is a teenage girl that becomes pregnant by her highschool boyfriend. Her family doesn't approve and wish to adopt the baby out. Ivy runs away to a cult. The cult is ran by Joel a puritanical leader. Ivy has a daughter Mia. Mia is raised in the cult and isn't allowed to read or even have a personal relationship with her mother. The cult believes that children don't belong to any two people but to the whole community. Mia is never content and knows she wants more from life. She starts sneaking off to the library to read novels. She falls in love with The Scarlet Letter which she has so much in common with... The second half of the book is a time travel between her world and Nathaniel Hawthornes world. This book is a quick read. I loved the idea of it and most of the story plot. I feel some feminist ideas of the book overshadowed the plot and could have been left out with the reader still coming to the same conclusions on their own. I enjoyed the brief history of Nathaniel Hawthorne but also thought this overshadowed the story in some ways. I would say read it for yourself if you're a book lover. It isn't Alice Hoffmans usual novel but I think it will be much appreciated amongst readers.

I was thrilled when Netgalley & Simon & Schuster gifted me an ARC of Alice Hoffman's lastest novel, The Invisible Hour. I have loved almost every book that Alice Hoffman has written and this was no exception. Her brilliant storytelling & characterization hook the read from the very first paragraph. Add some magic and time travel and you have a book that I did not want to ever end. Many of the issues tackled by Mia and her mother, Ivy, the 1950's & 60's, are issues that are again threatening women's right to decide what is right for them and their bodies.

If you have read any of Ms. Hoffman's books, you already know you will love this one also. If you have not yet had the pleasure of reading her books, this is a great place to begin.

I normally enjoy Hoffman quite a bit but The Invisible Hour didn’t quite connect with me. While I have come to expect some level of magic in Hoffman’s books there is usually more build up so the magic doesn’t come out of left field. Well, welcome to left field. The first parts of the novel, while often disjointed in their own ways, were rooted in reality so the magical part felt far fetched and confusing rather than integrated. It wasn’t a home run for me but it would definitely appeal to anyone with a deep love of Nathaniel Hawthorne and “The Scarlet Letter.” While I read and enjoyed The Scarlet Letter and I love anything Salem witch trials related, the far fetchedness of the third part of the book just alienated me from the book as a whole.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for the advance read in exchange for an honest review.

I love all of Alice Hoffman's books, and The Invisible Hour is no exception. It's another journey toward self-discovery, magic, love, heartbreak, and the wonder and power of books. Mia, the main character, lives in a repressive community/cult in Massachusetts where books are forbidden. She escapes, however, into a novel written two hundred years earlier--The Scarlet Letter--and sees a way forward. Don't miss this one.

I’ve read several wonderful books lately about books and readers and the impact of the written word to alter a life’s path. The Invisible Hour is one of these. In it, a young girl finds solace from her cult life through forbidden books. After her escape, her life is shaped by one in particular, The Scarlet Letter.

I was deeply moved by the first portion of the book, and then in the second half were some delightful and unexpected surprises. I recommend this book to fans of Alice Hoffman and those of us who identify as book people.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for offering this book in exchange for an honest review.

"I was at the library. That was when my life began."

This book might best be described as atmospheric. It definitely has a dream/nightmare quality that looms throughout.

Like every reader who has ever escaped into a book, Ivy amd Mia will definitely feel familiar. It seems like everyone is obsessed with Massachusetts. However, this book's connection to The Scarlet Letter makes it distinctive and different.

Although this isn't going to be my favorite Alice Hoffman, it certainly stands on its own.

"Luck can be many things, and she carried her luck with her, she carried it in a book."

I was over the moon when NetGalley approval came for this book. Alice Hoffman never lets me down. I LOVED The Invisible Hour. True to classic Hoffman style, its full of magic. I was swept away and not ready to say goodbye to this book. I finished the last page a few days ago, but I haven't been able to start another book yet. I need to sit in The Invisible Hour a little longer. Don't skip this one.

Thank you to NetGalley, Alice Hoffman, and Atria for the advanced digital copy.

I was thrilled to get an early copy of the invisible hour from Netgalley. I’ve always loved Alice Hoffman’s magical New England and read her books quickly, always wishing for more. This was no exception. When a book is centered on books, I’m in heaven Thank you to Atria for the advanced copy.

I’ve got to say that this is the very first time that I haven’t absolutely loved one of Alice Hoffman’s books. It was just a bit too disconnected for me and I didn’t get the zing I usually get when reading one of her books.

That’s OK though, don’t let my lack of zing stop you from reading it. I’m still a fan and am ready for her next book…because I know we can’t all love everything every single time.

A young girl secretly checks books out of the library and sneaks them into the cult like commune she lives. She breaks from the cult into the world because of books. Women’s choice ms haven’t expanded as much as one might think and hope. Alice Hoffman always has magic.

This book was very interesting and not what I expected. It was a story I’ve not experienced before.
The rioting was great brining up So many emotions and being sickened by what this girl was put though by her “father” & their religion. Thank goodness she had a great brain, thoughts and the librarian.
I’ve recommended this to a few people that I know will enjoy the JourneyAlice takes them on.

It is Alice Hoffman, so of course there is magic, this time in the form of time travel. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me an ARC in exchange for an honest review. The first third of the book was riveting. Ivy and Mia captured my heart. I was less enchanted by the subsequent two thirds. Hester’s story, ivy’s story and Mia’s story overlapped like a Venn diagram. The female characters were strong. The male characters, less so. Alice Hoffman fans will appreciate her beautiful prose.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/62919793

I loved this book and Hoffman is edging into my favorite author list. The magic of books is captured lovingly through a young girl who secretly checks books out from the library and sneaks them into the cult like commune she lives in. The love of literature comes from her mother and the mother daughter bond is highlighted. With magical transport, the story delves into the fantasy of the reader. The components and characters work well, hitting on the threat of censorship in today's political climate. A favorite!

Provided by the publisher and NetGalley

Thank you to netgalley, the author, and the publisher for the ARC!

I love Alice Hoffmann’s writing and I was pleasantly surprised when I realized there was some relation to the characters from magic lessons.

This story was sad, haunting, and full of redemption. Unfortunately I didn’t connect to the characters as much as I would have hoped but I still enjoyed their story, the books, and the mysteries within.